Well it turned out to be a case of Lars forgetting that airplanes were fun to go on, because on our return flight over the weekend, he was much better.
Aside from a little restlessness at the end of the flight, he did great, which made me feel a lot less guilty for putting him through it in the first place.
He will be taking a few more plane rides over the coming months as we travel to various out of country competitions, so it is comforting to know that he will handle them better.
So its our third last day in Florida and Lars will get to have his first actual run with us this morning.
We have done the majority of our running in the afternoon, and because of this Lars has been sidelined due to the heat.
We sometimes bring him on cooldowns with us but he is slowing down by the end, something that I would be doing too if I was wearing a black coat on a hot day.
He has been itching to run since he got here, and despite his frequent crying when on tie down at the track, I have managed to stay strong and not give into his pitiful little whimpers.
We’re going to the Orange Groave trail this morning, a soft surface trail which runs for 10 miles in a loop kinda deal.
Temperature is only 20 degrees, which is perfect for the Bar, and we’re only going for half an hour so even if it heats up he should be able to hang in.
Now all he needs is an empty waterbottle to bring with him and he’s all set.
Whenever it was Luther’s birthday, I would allow him to indulge in a human delicacy of my choice, one that I was sure he would approve of.
No little piece of cheese, no little chunk of meat, I’m talking a full fledged treat that if you asked him, would be worth an entire 364 days to wait for.
Over the years, Lu enjoyed numerous mouth watering birthday presents, ranging from a Big Mac and Fries to a mini Presidents Choice lasagne, to a full english breakfast.
After much deliberation, and helped by time constraints, I decided to continue the trend with Bar, something that I keep reminding him to thank his late brother for.
Have you ever seen a dog down a Krispy Kreme doughnut? I just hope Bar had time to enjoy it while it lasted cause he’s got 364 days to go before his next “birthday present.”
So getting to Florida proved to be a little more adventurous than I would’ve liked, but we are here, safe, and wet:(
I had a little bit of trouble at the airport, mainly because I still hold a British passport and was unawear that I needed to electronically fill out a form so that I could enter into the US.
Luckily for me one of the guys with us had an iPhone and was able to help me fill it out on the spot so I could travel, otherwise I would’ve been forced to fill it out at home, thus missing my flight and joining our team late.
Even Bar had a bit of a “rough” flight, never settling down at all.
He was pretty scared, which is rare for him since we have flown a lot since I got him.
He spent the majority of the flight shaking and panting, both of which are signs of stress in dogs.
The first time I flew with him, we went from Oregon to Chicago and he was a little nervous but since then we have flown five times and he’s been fine.
I hope its just a case of him forgetting that the airplane is not out to get him.
So every now and again I like to put Bar on the scale to get his weight to make sure he is not getting to, ahem, big or to, ahem, small.
To accomplish this task, I must weigh myself, get my own weight and repeat the process with Bar in my arms to get our joint weight.
This makes for a potentially funny picture I know, but is actually a pretty accurate way, and the only way that I can weigh him without taking him to the vet to do it.
Well today was one of those days when Bar and I stepped on the scale, and to my surprise he is up to 72lbs!
He is by no means an overweight dog, and those who know me or read this blog know what I think of owners who let their dogs regress, that said it is funny to think that when I got Bar he only weighed 61LBS.
Lars and I became a team when he was only 20 months old, and he has grown a lot since then, not only in age, but physically also.
He is not the typical barrel chested lab either, being very sleek and lean with muscular legs and a thick neck.
Typically labs from what I’ve read stop growing between 24 and 28 months of age, I guess Bar would be the acception to that rule.
He will celebrate his third birthday next Saturday when we are in Florida and had the luxury of celebrating his second birthday also in Florida.
To read about our trip to Florida last year check out our Florida Trip Recap 2009
Life can be a bitch sometimes no doubt about it, and just when you think that you’re having a bad day you hear of somebody else whose day seems just that little bit worse.
I recently had to let go of my own Luther and just the other day, heard that a friend of my brothers’ had to make the same tough decision I recently made.
If you can believe it, this is the second time that this woman has had to make the decision to end the life of an active service dog, and making this situation even more weird is the fact that both dogs were of a similar age.
Her dog just lost to her, developed lymphoma at the age of 7 and despite opting for chemotherapy, his health deteriorated very quickly.
He was still in full service to her, a fact that differs from my own situation a little bit.
Luther was retired, and I had already retrained with my current guide Lars, a beautiful svelt black lab.
Oh what to do?
What is the purpose of a leash?
“A chain, rope, or strap attached to the collar or harness of an animal, especially a dog, and used to lead it or hold it in check.” – Webster’s Dictionary
Hmmmm…
- A chain, or rope used to hold an animal in check?
- A chain, or rope used to lead an animal?
First of all, the purpose of a leash is not to hold an animal in check. The purpose of a leash is to connect the dog to the owner. Furthermore, last time I checked horses did not where leashes, and it is these huge misconceptions of the leash and its proper roll in the lives of the owner/dog team that prompted me to take the time to write this article.
The leash is a great invention due to its simplicity and its purpose. Without its invention, we would not be, along with our faithful four-legged companions able to take advantage of strolls on nice summer days, or brisk morning walks, yet the inability and ignorance of the common dog owner when it comes to using the leash makes me wonder why they do not come with instructions on how to use them.
As I said above, the leash was invented to attach you, the owner to your dog. The purpose of the leash is not for the owner to be the anchor behind the pulling bull, which 9 times out of ten is the actual scenario. Thousands upon thousands of dog owners would enjoy walking their dogs ten fold if they only knew and applied proper leash techniques when doing so.
The purpose of the leash while walking with your dog is to allow you the owner to have constant control over your dog, it is not to sentence your dog to a boring dull walk! Allowing your dog to venture to the boulevard for a sniff, or venturing off course to be lavished with affection by passersby, is simply your dog being a dog. I understand that in most cases it is simply a case of the public just not knowing any better; however, taking the time to find out the correct way to use the most common dog product ever made would help to know end, the relationship, and overall ambiance between dog and master.
Common Mistake
Letting your dog pull you around, is just teaching him/her that having a taught leash is cool and you do not mind being jerked from one place to another. The biggest fault with the taught leash scenario, is that the owner tends to pull back when the dog pulls, thus encouraging the dog to pull thus initiating a tug of war that the dog usually wins.
Solution
The dog must understand that you are in charge of the situation and they are not. Walking with you should be a privilege with acting out of control an undesirable and unacceptable act. By maintaining a slack leash while walking with your dog, you are giving yourself that extra foot of leash, as well as an extra second to react to your dog’s incessant forward lunges.
Technique
Pulling dog
First of all you the owner need to know the correct way to handle your dog’s leash. Always make sure that your leash arm is not straight but bent. By doing this, you are not putting stress on your arm, and you are giving yourself an arm length of leash to use when reacting to unwanted action from your dog:
- When your dog lunges forward from a loose leash to a tight leash, he/she will experience a level of discomfort. This in itself, may be enough to discourage the behavior. - If your dog continues to pull, this is where the bent arm theory comes in: By suddenly straightening your arm and backing up, you are delivering a loose leash, to taught correction to your dog’s forward lunging, thus putting a surprising and abrupt halt to your dog’s forward progress. - The third option is to straighten your arm while turning and walking in the opposite direction. By doing this you are providing a loose leash, to a hard correction, that is ongoing and only ceases when the dog complies with you.
The idea behind this approach is to make an effort to convey to the dog that this type of behavior is unacceptable and you the owner will not tolerate it. You the owner want your dog to make the association between lunging forward, and the resulting discomfort that accompanies that act. If proper leash technique is used correctly and consistently, one can put a stop to incessant pulling of any kind whether it be pulling forward, or pulling sideways. Always make a point to praise and reward the dog upon compliance! By doing this you are only strengthening the dog’s understanding that good behavior leads to good results. By relaying the message to your dog that unwanted activity will lead to discomfort, while compliance will lead to a good outcome, walking your dog will soon become a pleasure not a chore.
A friend of mine just purchased a new boxer puppy to go along with the 9-year-old lad he already owns.
Tie is a brindle male, and can be seen in this YouTube Clip.
Enter Newman into the fray, born December 29 2009.
Newman was 1 of 4 puppies from the litter, comprised of 2 boys and 2 ladies.
Ron gets to take him home in March, stay tuned for some interesting videos of Tie boxing the little guy.
So Lars the energetic one, has developed an undeniable love for his bed.
He spends bountiful amounts of time on it, and if I ever need to find him for whatever reason, that is the first and only place I need to look.
Don’t get me wrong, he is the furthest thing from a lazy dog that exists whatever that thing may be, but he, without a doubt enjoys his leisure time.
Lars is a very energetic dog, and he has outlets for sure to burn off this energy whether it be from daily play sessions, guide work or actual trail running.
It is funny to see such an active dog spend so much time lying down, but Lars has developed a true passion for putting himself to bed, at anytime of day.
If anybody who did not know Lars were to see him on a daily basis, they’d think I work him to the bone, 8 hours a day.
He is not getting as much running time because of the winter weather we are dealing with but he is still logging 2 to 3 runs a week, plus all the playtime he demands, lol.
He reminds me a little of myself in a way due to his apparent need for lengthy naps during the day.
I work from home, and being a national team level track athlete, have the flexibility to train when I want, as much as I want and to nap as often as I can.
I keep telling Lars that maybe when he retires from guide work, he can sleep on the “big bed.”
Pretty weird stretch of 3 days I’m in the midst of, not quite sure how this worked out the way it did but see for yourself:
January 10 is the anniversary of Luther and I meeting each other for the first time
January 11 is the anniversary of his death
The 12th day of the 4th month, April 12 was Luther’s birthday.
Told you it was weird.
